St. Simon’s Church – Peak, South Carolina

This shell of St. Simon’s Episcopal Church in the rural community of Peak in Newberry County once held a vibrant congregation. The church was organized in 1889, and the building was constructed in 1900. According to locals, this was last an active church in the early 1920s. Since then, the property owner left the building to two siblings, one of whom lived in the church, earning himself the nickname “Preacher”. Descendants of Preacher’s sister now live in a home in front of the church and use the building for storage.

Do you know a story or have any information about the St. Simon’s Church? If so, please send it to the South Carolina Picture Project. Thank you!

Reflections on St. Simon’s Church

The painting near the top of the page was done by Pete Holland, who shares: “Today the About Face Plein Air painters from the Columbia Museum of Art were painting at the St. Simon’s Episcopal Church in Peak, SC. It’s a beautiful old church that is in disrepair. My understanding from the neighbor is that the church is about to be relocated and hopefully restored. It has great potential.”

Contributor Jim Jenkins leaves readers with these words about the road to St. Simon’s: “The street leading to the old church is an unpaved, two-rut road that leads from one block to the other. Only one vehicle can use the street at the time, but I did not see any directional signs as to the proper use of the street. In small communities like Peak, people give way to their neighbor.”

The purpose of the South Carolina Picture Project is to celebrate the beauty of the Palmetto State and create a permanent digital repository for our cultural landmarks and natural landscapes. We invite you to add additional pictures (paintings, photos, etc) of St. Simon’s Church, and we also invite you to add info, history, stories, and travel tips.
Together, we hope to build one of the best and most loved SC resources in the world!

Please Share Your Thoughts!

The South Carolina Picture Project is a volunteer project which earns no profit. We work hard to ensure its accuracy, but if you see a mistake, please know that it is not intentional and that we are more than happy to update our information if it is incorrect. That said, our goal is to create something positive for our state, so please make your comments constructive if you would like them to be published. Thank you!

Name (required)

Email (required, will not be published)

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail

6 Comments about St. Simon’s Church

• SCIWAY says:
March 20th, 2017 at 7:09 am

No worries! Best of luck finding it!

• SueAnn says:
March 17th, 2017 at 11:36 am

Oh Bless! Now I see the address for GPS. Sorry for asking an obvious question.

• SueAnn says:
March 17th, 2017 at 11:35 am

How can I find this beautiful church? Does anyone have directions that they would be willing to share?

• Donna Lynn Walker Gore says:
January 9th, 2017 at 4:41 pm

So wonderful to get info re: this church where I painted with Pete Holland (above comment) and from an elementary/high school friend, Lucy Ray, of Birmingham, Alabama. Lucy sent me this info. Amazing what social media can do!

• Jackie Thompson says:
October 14th, 2016 at 8:12 am

I visited the church on October 12, 2016. It is in immediate need of attention. The vines have completely taken over. I would be interested in helping to clear or help in any way. If there is a committee or group please contact me!

• Tom Howard says:
April 30th, 2014 at 1:51 pm

Just wonder how many souls were saved at such church as that. Looks beautiful now, just think back then! One can still see there was care in the detail! Reminds me of “Little House On the Prairie”!